Application: Harness and lifting system for an elephant’s foot surgery
Customer: Washington Park Zoo (now the Oregon Zoo)
Location: Portland, Oregon
Date: March 19, 1997
System:
- Wall-mounted hoist working in unison with a cable-driven overhead trolley
- Custom harness to support, lift, roll and lower a 6,900 lb elephant
- Engineered for up to 20,000 lbs to cover live shock loads
- Designed and operated on site by APPI
Why APPI
In March 1997, Belle, the 6,900 lb matriarch elephant at Portland’s Washington Park Zoo, needed foot surgery. To operate, the veterinary team had to support her weight as she went under anesthesia, roll her onto her side, lower her gently onto a cushioned bed, and lift her back up until she was awake and steady on her feet.
The zoo asked Allied Power Products to review a proposed lifting setup. APPI suggested a better way and designed the system itself: a hoist bolted to the wall, paired with a cable-driven overhead trolley. Running the two together let the crew lift Belle and roll her over in one smooth, controlled motion. Hoffmann Construction, already working at the zoo, installed the steel supports for the winches and trolley; the design was all APPI’s.
Because the load was a living animal, the system was engineered to hold up to 20,000 lbs, nearly three times Belle’s weight, in case she moved while suspended. Allied president Bob Peterson ran the machines himself during the surgery, which kept Belle comfortably on her side for more than two and a half hours. “If you drop a machine and break it, you buy another one,” he told the Valley Times, “but she is not replaceable.”
The operation went smoothly. Belle sat down once while her straps were being fitted, but gave the team no trouble going under or waking up. It wasn’t APPI’s first job at the zoo: years earlier the company had helped build a system to get a fallen elephant back on her feet. APPI also donated a substantial part of the cost of this one.
The story ran in the Beaverton Valley Times on March 27, 1997 (“Belle gets a lift from local firm,” by K.D. Norris). The framed clipping still hangs in our office.
Allied Power Products designs lifting and pulling systems for loads that can’t be dropped. Contact us to talk through your application.
